China says mass fish deaths unrelated to Tianjin blasts

Officials say thousands of fish found on riverbank near site of deadly explosions had died from lack of oxygen.

21 Aug 2015 18:41 GMT

Tianjin officials said the mass fish deaths were caused by regular seasonal low oxygen levels in the water [Reuters]

Thousands of dead fish have been found stockpiled on the riverbank of the city of Tianjin, several kilometres from the site of last week's giant chemical blasts that killed more than 100 people and injured hundreds of others.

Local officials on Friday apparently sought to allay suspicions that the deaths of the fish were linked to the explosions, saying that tests of water samples and dead fish taken from three different spots in the Haihe River on Thursday found neither cyanide nor sulfide.

Tianjin officials said the mass fish deaths were caused by regular seasonal low oxygen levels in the water.

Authorities have confirmed that more than 700 tonnes of the deadly chemical sodium cyanide were stored at the Tianjin warehouse that blew up.

A report from the Tianjin Environmental Protection Bureau issued on Wednesday said that tests conducted the day before showed that cyanide levels in the river, sea and waste water in the evacuated area around the explosion site had risen sharply since the deadly blasts.

One testing site at the mouth of a rain water pipe recorded cyanide levels 277 times above acceptable standards.